Almost 3 million bidders use LiveAuctioneers to find extraordinary items in auctions around the world. This experience just got better than ever. Today we are proud to present the newest LiveAuctioneers.com making your online auction experience faster and more reliable, and, of course, with the best auctions.

The new LiveAuctioneers website is the fastest and most secure in the industry. With all the features you love from the ‘Classic’ LiveAuctioneers experience, including seamless messaging, saved searches, and personalized bids, the new LiveAuctioneers.com brings bidders and auction houses an even better digital live auction. Your new LiveAuctioneers is:

Fast:With industry-leading speed enhancements, your online bidding experience has never been faster, enabling bidders to get their bids in faster, and auction houses to process bids more quickly.

Secure & Reliable: The new site is powered by best-in-class security and stability technology, achieving 99.999% uptime during live auctions.

Mobile Friendly: Use LiveAuctioneers on any iOS, Android or tablet and get the same fast and secure bidding experience anywhere.

Optimized for Search and Search Alerts: On the new LiveAuctioneers.com, we’ve enabled faceted search functions that allow bidders to find unique treasures in thousands of auctions. To date, LiveAuctioneers bidders have saved hundreds of thousands of searches, alerting them to specific and unique new items from worldwide auctioneers. You can also search within catalogs and a single trusted auctioneers’ catalogs.

Upgraded for Easy Payments: We know how frustrating payment can be. With LiveAuctioneers, hundreds of auctions houses are now accepting payment online with bank-level security so you can pay for your winning items quickly and reliably.

As an industry leader in speed and technology, these updates are just the beginning. Stay tuned for even more updates to the LiveAuctioneers experience including, updated native mobile applications, improved search relevance, and so much more.

http://pages.liveauctioneers.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/liveauctioneers_logo2-300x40.png00lai38cnspoidfy7http://pages.liveauctioneers.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/liveauctioneers_logo2-300x40.pnglai38cnspoidfy72017-08-16 10:17:522017-08-22 17:16:14A New LiveAuctioneers with Even More

Introducing a new way to build trust with buyers to increase activity on your auction sales

Auctioneers can now add a headshot and short bio on their auction lot pages, revealing to bidders the expert specialist who curated the items for the auction. The addition of the auction curators’ profile on lot pages, enables auctioneers to:

Build trust with online bidders displaying the specialists at your auction house

Add context to sales by revealing who curated the sale

Create lasting value by disclosing your expert teams to bidders

It is proven that with more detailed descriptions and added context on your lots, bidders are more confident in participating in your auctions, driving up sell through rates on your items.

Auction houses can provide an unlimited number of specialists for their auction house profile, however, at this time only two curators can be displayed per catalog. After bios are added to auction house profiles from by the support team, follow these instructions on adding expert bios to your catalogs.

To Keep in Mind

At this time, only up to two curators can be displayed per catalog

You can provide as many specialists as you’d like for your auction house profile, so you can choose the best fit for each auction

Photo tip: The best headshots are color photos, hi-res images, with a professional appearance

Grow more. Sell more. Vacation more.

Let LiveAuctioneers clerk your auctions with reserves.

Growing your sales has never been easier. We’re excited to introduce automated timed auctions with reserve prices on LiveAuctioneers. This technology gives Auction House partners a new opportunity to increase business sales by automating an auction without the need of a live clerk. This product update introducing reserves to timed auction automation saves Auction House partners time and money. This new functionality is offered at no additional cost, and can be used starting now.

With the implementation of this time-saving and money-saving update, auctioneers can:

How Do Reserves Affect Bidders?

For all auctions, absentee bidders will be notified if the reserve price has not been met through an alert on the lot page and on their My Bids page.

Live bidders will also be notified of a reserve during timed sales only, which are not clerked by an auctioneer.

If you are running a live sale, LiveAuctioneers will not display any messaging about the reserve price to live bidders, as the clerk is in control of operating the sale and we do not want to interfere with your activity.

If a bid during a live sale is less than the set reserve price, our technology will prompt the bidder to place a higher bid closer to the reserve price. During a live sale clerked by a live auctioneer, the technology system will not prompt a higher bid, and auctioneers are strongly discouraged from engaging in this type of behavior manually.

How to Add Reserve Prices

Easily apply reserve prices to your items during single or batch lot upload.

For single lot upload, fill in the ‘reserve’ field with a numeric number. Please exclude any currencies or decimal places.

For batch lot upload, include a column titled ‘Reserve Price.’ As with the other numeric inputs, please keep these inputs to whole numbers like ‘1000’ and exclude commas or periods. A sample sheet can be downloaded here (include link).

Best Practices For Reserve Pricing

Reserves should not be higher than the low estimate of items. The low estimate should be a reasonable and achievable outcome for the final price of an item.

Changes to reserves should be made no later than two hours prior to the start of a sale.

Reserves cannot be changed after the item has already sold.

Per above, lots cannot be canceled post-sale due to the item(s) not reaching a perceived value. A reserve should be the minimum for which a lot will sell; once the reserve is met, the bidder has met the base requirement for winning the item.

Similarly, bidders should not be able to cancel a sale if they bid above the reserve and won the item at or above that amount.

Buyers should always be informed on LiveAuctioneers when there is a reserve on an item. Utilize the reserve price feature to inform bidders that there is a reserve.

It is not appropriate for an auction house to bid on their own items exceeding the reserve price.

Ready to enjoy more business?

Get more info: Learn more about how to set up your next timed auction with reserve pricing here.

Set up a training:Click here to contact our support team to get a formal training on setting up automated timed auctions with reserves.

An overview of beginning your Japanese Woodblock print collection and a preview of the upcoming Jasper52 auction on Saturday, September 10 at 4:00pm ET. Written by Dieuwke Eijer.

The word ‘collecting’ is often associated with ‘lots of money.’ As that may be correct in specific categories of collectables, some of the traditional collecting fields are offering us surprising opportunities. Luckily, within the Japanese woodblock prints we can find an amazing variety of high quality prints in good condition that do not break the bank, along with the blockbuster prints, such as the “Great Wave” by Hokusai.

Japanese woodblock prints can be divided into four broad categories:

Ukiyoe – traditional woodblock prints until roughly 1900

Shin-hanga – created from the late Meiji era until World War II, showing a mixture of traditional Japanese and modern western elements

Sosaku-hanga – avant-garde movement of the 1950s-1970s

Works by contemporary artists

Each category produced remarkable artists and subjects, to satisfy each possible angle of collecting prints. You can collect broadly, picking one print by each artist or school, from the beginning of ukiyoe until today. But there are also print collections narrowly focused on certain elements, such as on clocks, or firemen and their equipment, collections of works by Kawase Hasui and his peers (example below), or of complete series by a single ukiyoe artist – such as the B.W. Robinson collection of Kuniyoshi prints.

The group of prints offered in the September 10th Jasper52 auction, represents a broad array of artists from the ukiyoe school to the sosaku-hanga movement. Among the ukiyoe school prints, you will find works by Hiroshige from a variety of his series. Each of them is a very good impression and in remarkable color condition, giving us insight in some aspects of life in the city of Edo or along the road. The inside of an inn in Ishibe, a samurai train crossing the Oi River near Shimada, or people enjoying tea, a pipe and something to nosh at a tea stall near the Sanno Shrine.

In the late 19th century, Westerners started to travel to Japan, and the prints from that period reflect modern art concepts that led to the shin-hanga movement in the 20th century. Simultaneously, some Japanese artists chose to stick to traditional Japanese themes and turned their focus to nature. Examples of both can be found in this catalog. Eight works by the great observer of birds Ohara Koson are complemented by bird prints by some of his contemporaries, representing the artist group that turned to nature. On the other hand, great atmospheric evening views along the Sumida River in Tokyo by Kobayashi Kiyochika show us western influences. A canal with houses lined up in perspective; the silhouette of a man in western suit and hat among people dressed in kimono.

Shin-hanga artist Yoshida Hiroshi continued the landscape tradition of his great predecessors Hokusai and Hiroshige. At the occasion of the publication of his catalogue raisonné in 1987, a few of his masterworks were re-printed from the original blocks. Printed with the same care that Yoshida himself would have exercised, would he have lived, these posthumous works in amazing condition are affordable.

Hiroshi Yoshida, Spring in a Hot Spring. Originally published in 1927, this is a print from 1986. Est $200-$250

The prints are closed off by a few representatives of the sosaku-hanga movement and contemporary artists. Their names may be lesser known among the western collectors, but the quality of materials and degree of perfection are continued and can make the starting point of a wonderful collection.

Dieuwke Eijer has over 20 years experience in Japanese traditional art. Before relocating to NYC, she led the Asian Art department at one of Europe’s oldest auction houses. She currently works with international buyers, auction houses, and gallerists to develop their collections, and is a member of the Japanese Society of Arts (Netherlands), the Japanese Art Society of America, and the International Netsuke Society.

Vikings and ancient Scandinavian culture and lore have attracted increased interest in recent years, largely in part to film and television programming Have you heard of Game of Thrones?). This awareness has led to a fascination with the skillful metalwork of Vikings, including their weaponry and jewelry. Discoveries of the divergent representation of masterful Viking metalwork continue to occur in the UK and other western European countries, according to Bob Dodge, owner/director/founder, Artemis Gallery Ancient Art, which specializes in antiquities and ancient art.

Below we outline the key facts and info behind Viking jewelry, so you can start your collection:

Gold Ring

While silver appears to have been the metal of choice, a small number of Viking gold pieces and bronze objects have come to auction, Dodge said. This gold Viking ring from the ninth to the 12th century was found in Britain.

While we may not know the exact meaning behind the designs, we do find indicators or origins. Shield forms probably paid homage to the importance of this item of warfare to the expansionist dreams of the Vikings, said Dodge.

Sorcerer’s Amulet

Examples of Viking mythology and their religion can also be seen in ancient jewelry. For example, this pierced amulet, shaped as a duck’s foot is similar to a necklace found at the grave of a woman of wealth and societal status, along with a wand and other items. It was believed, based on the discovery of the items in the grave, that the woman was a sorcerer or seer.

Silver Ring

Efficient design and ease of use are at the core of ancient Viking jewelry. This heavy overlapping coil of silver band has been twisted and incised with “feather” pattern along most of its length. Rings are a common type of Viking jewelry discovered today, second only to bracelets, Dodge explained.

Hoop Earrings

Long before advancements in fabrication, Vikings created weapons, armor and tools that stood the test of time and completed the tasks at hand. Those skills are also evident in more elaborate jewelry designs like that of these gold hoop earrings. Other shapes seen in Viking jewelry include hearts, crescents and axes.

A carefully curated 62-lot boutique selection of autographed photos, posters and poster cards is offered in Jasper52’s September 11 Signed Celebrity Memorabilia Auction. All items are guaranteed authentic, and most have no reserve, meaning they will sell to the highest bidder regardless of the amount of the bid.

Celebrities featured in the auction range from actors and entertainers to high-profile sports figures and even royalty. Here’s a look at some of the most anticipated lots in the auction:

Signed Princess Diana Poster

This poster depicts the beloved British Royal Family member in a cherry-red coat with matching beret. Measuring 8 by 9.75 inches, it is clearly signed “Diana.” Still missed and admired 19 years after her untimely death on Aug. 31, 1997, Diana is one of the most collected of all public figures of the 20th century.

Signed Arnold Palmer Poster

In the world of golf, Arnold Palmer is known as “The King.” With 62 lifetime PGA Tour wins, four Green Jackets for winning the Masters Tournament, and additional big wins at the U.S. Open and other important events, Palmer is a superstar idolized by golfers everywhere.

Carolyn Jones Poster Card

By the time she became the iconic Morticia Addams on television’s popular 1960s series The Addams Family, Carolyn Jones was already a respected and well-established actress with an Oscar nomination to her credit. Jones was so admired for her adept interpretation of the Morticia character, she was awarded a coveted Golden Globe.

Poster card of Oscar-nominated actress Carolyn Jones, who also received a Golden Globe for her role as Morticia Addams on the TV series The Addams Family, 5 x 7 inches, signed, est. $100-$150

Signed Duke Ellington Poster

Duke Ellington enjoyed a more than 50-year career as a jazz composer, pianist and bandleader. He was also greatly admired for his sartorial style, whether onstage or off. This is signed poster of Ellington wearing a dapper houndstooth checked jacket and diagonally striped necktie.

Like paper-and-ink books in general, bookshops can seem like an endangered species in the digital age. Yet an undercurrent of profound commitment to this 560 year-old technology, the printed book, sustains book lovers in their belief that a better vessel for preserving and conveying testimony to what it means to be alive has yet to be devised, e-readers be damned. Booksellers, equally partisans of the printed book, continue to recognize this, and as long as they do, we can hope for the longevity of the bookshop as a place of discovery and community. Below are the top hits when it comes to rare book shops in the United States:

Image courtesy of Bauman Rare Books

Bauman Rare Books

If you want an immersive experience in the history of the book as a cultural object, I can think of no better place than Bauman Rare Books. With shops on Madison Avenue in New York City and in the Palazzo Hotel in Las Vegas, the Baumans offer what they call “landmark books” in all fields, from the 15th century to today. This amounts to a one-stop tour of some of the boldest ideas and most cherished writers the Western tradition has produced, from Shakespeare and Adam Smith to Jane Austen and Mary Wollstonecraft, from Charles Darwin and Thomas Jefferson to Madame Curie and Martin Luther King, Jr. No other rare bookshop in the country has brought together a selection in as wide a range of subjects. Visitors shouldn’t be put off by the museum-like atmosphere, though. The booksellers here are extremely friendly and knowledgeable. They’re eager to share stories about the publication history of each book on display, and to educate newcomers in the terminology and tradecraft of rare and antiquarian books. You can even handle many of the great rarities on offer.

Honey & Wax Booksellers

So much of book collecting and bookselling is about personal taste, and no bookseller I know has better taste than Honey & Wax Booksellers. Their motto – “Use books as bees use flowers” – gestures perfectly at both the aesthetic and utilitarian functions that books have historically served. Honey & Wax offers a distinctive selection in literature, the arts and children’s books, among other areas. What really characterizes each of their books, though, is a strong visual or tactile component that’s emblematic of that book’s place in time and culture, something Honey & Wax describes as having “no downloadable equivalent,” whether it be hand-colored illustrations, an exquisitely crafted binding, or a unique ownership history. Honey & Wax’s books are primarily available online and through its beautiful catalogues, but their Brooklyn office is open by appointment only.

Brian Cassidy

Another dealer I greatly admire is Brian Cassidy, Bookseller. Cassidy is among a handful of emerging rare booksellers looking beyond traditional book collecting for the type of ephemeral material that shapes and defines cultural trends and movements before we’ve even realized it. Outsider literary magazines, punk rock posters and handbills, pulp paperbacks, handmade artists books, personal scrapbooks and photo albums documenting little-known subcultures – these are the kinds of “cultural detritus” Cassidy discovers and meticulously catalogues, providing a context for them in the larger world. Based in the Washington, D.C. area, Cassidy sells primarily online and through catalogues, as well as regularly at book fairs around the country.

The pleasures of ordinary used bookshops shouldn’t be overlooked or understated. Books produced at different moments in recent history jostle together on their shelves, reflecting both the changes and the constants of our communal tastes and values. Moreover, used bookshops are important incubators for collectors and dealers of rare books, as they demonstrate the richness and variety that are possible, and train the eye and fingertips in detection.

Unnameable Books

More than any other player, alas, it’s the used bookseller that’s most threatened in the digital age. One of my favorites still in operation is Unnameable Books in Brooklyn, NY. They have first-rate selections in fiction and poetry, philosophy and critical theory, art, film, music, history and politics, as well as books in foreign languages, and a small selection of rare books in back. They’re affordable, and they buy books and take them on trade. Basically they’re everything a good used bookshop – the kind you could once find several of in every neighborhood in New York City – should be.

Any of your favorites left off this list? Tweet @ByJasper52 and share your suggestions.

Erik DuRon has nearly 20 years of experience buying and selling rare books in all fields, first at Bauman Rare Books in New York City, and then independently. He has built collections for diverse clients, and collaborates with and consults for collectors, booksellers and auction houses. He lives in Brooklyn and can be reached at erikduron@msn.com.

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Jasper52’s August 28th online-only rare books auction boasts an eclectic selection of fascinating books, autographs, and documents, from the 16th to the 20th centuries. Among the many subject areas to entice collectors at all levels are: American history, nautical history, World War II, literature, popular science, transportation, animal husbandry, art, and early printed books and autographs from England and the Continent.

Sterling silver has historically been a popular vehicle for creativity and innovation in design, and the treasures in this Jasper52 auction are exquisite examples of this. Art Nouveau, Art Deco and Grand Baroque are just a few of the ornate motifs offered in the auction, which takes place Aug. 21.